Passing through the large vault doors, Twilight immediately began to feel the pressure at the back of her mind begin to lift. It was a slow process, but after she heard the exit slam shut behind them, Twilight finally felt her magic return to her in full. Not only that, but the dull headache that had been plaguing her since she woke up vanished mere moments later.
“Twilight, are you okay?” Sunset Shimmer inquired.
The former pony nodded. “Just fine. That field was beginning to grow irritating, is all.”
“Well I’m glad you’re feeling better,” Sunset Shimmer remarked.
As silence fell over them once more, Twilight allowed her gaze and mind to wander.
She briefly wondered if it would be better to simply teleport away and leave the humans to their fate before brushing that thought aside. She wouldn't ditch them, especially while they had something which would aid in her return to her own world. Her changing surroundings drew Twilight from her considerations to where the almost futuristic look of the lower levels had quickly vanished.
The clean metal walls had been replaced by dull white stone that hinted at the true age of the structure. Visible pipes ran across the ceiling, with the infested woman nearly bumping her head against the particularly large ones as she walked the long halls. Doors occasionally dotted the hall, and so did a few personnel who didn't give the pair more than a passing glance before proceeding on their way.
Though clearly much older than the vault, this area had received some upgrades, with thick cables having been taped or otherwise secured to the walls. Wiring ran everywhere, and relatively new-looking cameras gazed down on them from on high. Even the lights seemed dated, with their glow being an off-yellow rather than the bright white of the vault.
Though Twilight’s curiosity urged her to ask more about this place, there was something slightly more pressing on her mind.
“You know that after I use the final portal, there will be no way to return you to Equestria,” Twilight began. “If you wanted, I could take you with me.”
Sunset Shimmer shook her head. “There is nothing left for me in Equestria, at least not anymore.”
“I know you have at least some family left back home,” Twilight encouraged.
“I suppose I might have some aunts and uncles as well as cousins, but that's about it,” Sunset Shimmer remarked with a shrug. “As you likely already know, I never met my father, and my mother passed away shortly before I left Equestria.”
“And with Celestia…” Twilight sighed. “I’m sorry. I should have considered my words more carefully.”
“It's fine,” Sunset quickly replied. “My family is here now. Some of the girls… well, we are all we have left.”
Twilight nodded slowly, glancing further up the hall to where an elevator could be seen. “Tell me about your time here. How did you turn things around?”
Sunset Shimmer chuckled darkly. “As you likely already guessed, I came here with revenge in mind. I wanted to use my magic to create an army of enslaved students which I could use against Celestia and force her to make me an alicorn.”
“You do know that's not how it works, right?” Twilight questioned.
“I figured that out later. When getting back at Celestia no longer consumed my thoughts,” Sunset Shimmer admitted. “At the time I was convinced it was going to work. Although I quickly realized that not only was there no magic here, but I couldn't carry over any low-level artifact either.”
The girl put her hands in the larger pockets at the forefront of her tactical vest. “After that I tried to cut and run, coming back through the mirror, only to find it no longer worked. Even after I waited the allotted amount of time.”
Twilight nodded. “By then Celestia had realized that her plans had been disrupted by the zerg’s arrival on our planet and hid the mirror away in order to ensure that if she lost the conflict, they couldn't infect another world.’
Sunset Shimmer chuckled darkly, shaking her head. “Oh, the irony of that is just something else.”
“That it is,” Twilight agreed. “So, what happened next?”
“Well, I gave up on revenge and just sort of went to school again,” Sunset Shimmer began, her tone becoming wistful. “I was still a bit of a bully, but without a way of returning home I was listless and no longer had a reason to go on.”
“Well that's… better. I guess,” Twilight murmured.
“It was.” Sunset Shimmer stopped in front of the now closed elevator and pressed a button on the wall. “I didn't really do much until the sirens started to make a mess of things. Then I helped to defend the school by joining up with the rest of my friends.”
The door opened to reveal an empty interior, which she quickly entered along with Twilight, who made the cargo elevator dip slightly as it adjusted to her weight. Once inside, Sunset Shimmer reached down and clicked a button that had the words ‘Cargo Bay Access’ written above it. A second later the doors closed, and they began to rise quickly, the floor numbers ticking by at a rapid pace.
“At first I told myself that I was only helping because I claimed ownership of the school, but after defeating the sirens, something changed,” Sunset Shimmer continued.
“You realized what they meant to you,” Twilight inferred.
“Yeah,” Sunset Shimmer murmured. “I knew in that moment of victory that helping people is what I was always supposed to do with my life. My grief over the death of my mother and the perceived slight of Celestia not rewarding me with alicornhood had distracted me from that.”
The smaller girl smiled. “I always wanted to be a healer, to research magic in order to better aid the average individual, only to get wrapped up in the pursuit of power to the point that I forgot why I even wanted it in the first place.”
“I’m glad you realized it in the end,” Twilight exclaimed.
“Me too,” Sunset Shimmer declared.
A moment later and the doors opened to reveal that they were indeed standing near what could only be described as a cargo bay. Only a short hallway lined with a half dozen doors lay between them and a wide open space filled with movement. The doors which would have barred them access from the area hung open at the end of the hall, inviting Twilight’s gaze deeper into the facility.
Walking out into the open area, Twilight quickly realized the true scale of their little operation, as dozens upon dozens of humans were going this way and that. The majority of the space had been turned into a science lab of some kind, with towering beacons and caged specimens visible. The rest was occupied by two slick black planes as well as a pair of motor vehicles and what looked like a fully operational tank, though one far more futuristic than what Twilight had ever seen.
The ceiling high above them resembled the rib cage of a massive metal beast from which dangled several sets of lights. At the highest point hung a long hanging structure from which dozens of windows looked out onto the organized chaos below. To Twilight’s right stood the enormous door that likely led outside, given its sheer, mammoth size.
“Pretty cool, huh?” Sunset Shimmer remarked.
Twilight nodded dumbly. “I’ve heard that they were starting to build bunkers like this back in Equestria ,but this dwarfs what they’ve been doing by quite a large margin.”
“Wow, really? Because when I left, we were basically in the dark ages,” Sunset Shimmer retorted.
“What did I tell you? A lot has changed,” Twilight stated.
“So it seems,” Sunset Shimmer admitted, motioning to the left. “Come on. I’ll tell ya more about this place while we head to the observation deck.”
“Yes, please. I’m curious as to why they would build something like this.” Twilight turned to her companion. “Celestia didn't tell me much about this place. Do humans have many enemies?”
“Only themselves,” Sunset Shimmer dryly replied. “For a while there the United States thought they were going to get invaded by the Soviet Union and built bunkers like this all over the country. They wanted to be able to protect the population while also serving as bases where an insurgency could be mustered in case they lost this theoretical conflict.”
“That sounds rather paranoid,” Twilight murmured. “If their military had already been defeated, how could a couple of armed civilians change things?”
Sunset shrugged. “That's probably why they got decommissioned so quickly. After that the division of extra-worldly affairs took over the place and did some retrofitting as you no doubt noticed.”
The pair entered another elevator, this one being much smaller and packed full of now uncomfortable humans. After pressing a button marked ‘Observation Deck’, the metal box began to sluggishly ascend to the higher floors, chugging audibly all the while.
Twilight shifted awkwardly, doing her best not to squish a rather small white-skinned man against the wall and failing miserably. “So uh, what happened after that?” Twilight remarked.
“Well, that pretty brings us up to now,” Sunset Shimmer concluded. “We’ve helped dig out some more space for better facilities, but it's slow going, considering how hard it is to acquire building supplies in the middle of a war zone.”
“Sorry,” Twilight muttered after they reached the next floor and several humans filed out through the back of the elevator. “Pardon me.”
As soon as the lift began to ascend once more, and Twilight no longer had to worry about accidentally squishing another human. She let out a sigh of relief.
“Since then we’ve been using this as our main headquarters, but they have tunnels all throughout the mountains here,” Sunset Shimmer explained. “We even have a helicopter pad up top, and ways of getting into Canterlot’s older buildings without being noticed.”
“That sounds handy. No wonder you haven't been found out yet,” Twilight remarked.
“Well, between that and our early discovery of the psi emitter, it's fairly easy to stay hidden,” Sunset Shimmer stated evenly.
“It helps that we don't do too many operations nearby,” Sunset Shimmer continued. “Most of the people here are either remnants of the national guard or armed locals, so they aren't trained for that sort of thing.”
“That explains the variety of uniforms I saw earlier,” Twilight murmured.
“Right. Well, we’re here,” Sunset Shimmer claimed a second before the elevator dinged. “Let me do the talking initially.”
Twilight merely nodded and faced forward as the doors opened to reveal a long room filled with dozens of screens. On either side of the elevator stood a pair of guards with assault rifles dangling at their sides. The many workstations were manned by twenty or so humans, some of whom were locked in important-sounding conversations with individuals on their monitors.
On the whole it seemed fairly slow, with some terminals sitting empty and the majority of the screens being filled by simple text. At the forefront of it all stood a towering woman with long, two-toned blue hair which had been tied into a tight ponytail. Even when viewing her from the back, Twilight got the distinct impression that this person was vaguely familiar for some reason.
She wore a simple, long-sleeved black shirt along with a pair of grey jeans, with the only thing out of place being a pistol holstered on her hip. The weapon itself was rather odd, as unlike the rest of the weapons Twilight had seen, this one looked much older. The thing had six chambers, a long intimidating barrel and a flat black paint job that only added to its menacing aura.
Upon entering the room, the guards on either side straightened and glanced briefly at Twilight before noticing Sunset’s presence. Upon seeing that the towering infested woman was accompanied by the much smaller former pony, they relaxed. That didn't mean the various attendants did however, and Twilight noticed more than a few nervous glances being shot her way.
She didn't pay them any mind and merely followed a step behind Sunset, her gaze returning to the woman who stood impassive amidst the chaos which now surrounded her. As they drew closer, Twilight realized that this director of theirs was studying a large map of what was likely earth displayed in front of her by some unseen hologram projector in the ceiling. Red dots swallowed the coast of one continent, nearly covering it completely in an angry crimson wave.
Other blips and small concentrations of scarlet could be seen across the globe, though they were usually outnumbered by the green triangles. Which were scattered all over the place, some blinking, others of which were turned upside down. Twilight wasn't sure what it all meant, but she was certain that this director knew, as her gaze didn't leave the map until the pair were a few feet away.
“Sunset Shimmer,” declared a surprisingly deep, steely voice. “I allow you and your friends greater autonomy due to your unique skills, but you really should notify me if you are coming here.”
“As if you wouldn't already know that anyway,” Sunset replied with a smirk.
The woman chuckled. “Very true. Now then, why don't you introduce me to your new friend?”
Twilight set her jaw, the infested woman having already realized who this was before she turned around. Sure enough, the woman had pale teal skin, sharp, navy blue eyes, and a firm countenance. Though tall and well-muscled compared to the humans Twilight had seen so far, she was nothing compared to Twilight herself.
Who had to maneuver her head as she had walked through the room in order to not hit one of the many fluorescent lights dangling from the ceiling. Still, even with her assumption confirmed, and her logical side reminding her that this was not Nightmare Moon, Twilight still struggled to keep calm. It took several long, deep breaths before Twilight felt confident she wouldn't lash out at the woman at the first opportunity.
“And this is the other Twilight, from my world,” Sunset Shimmer declared, giving the taller woman a worried look. “Who seems to be having a bit of trouble at the moment.”
“I’m fine,” Twilight muttered. “Just had some bad experiences with your director’s counterpart in my reality.”
The woman raised an eyebrow. “And I’ve had my own fair share of poor experiences with yours.”
“So I have been made aware,” Twilight murmured before breathing deeply one final time. “Though I doubt they quite rival global genocide.”
The director raised an eyebrow and glanced to Sunset questioningly. “What is she talking about? Oh, and I assume you had her cleared?”
“I did. This Twilight has some kind of magic placed on her that stops her from being controlled by the other Twilight,” Sunset Shimmer explained. “As for what she's talking about, well… it seems as though the other version of you is a power-mad demigod trying to kill all life on Equestria.”
“That is…” The woman frowned. “The first time I’ve ever found myself at a loss for words.”
“But you aren't her,” Twilight stated.
“And you aren't our Twilight either, now are you?” questioned the director.
“No,” Twilight replied.
“Excellent, and I assume you are willing to help us? Given that you are not trying to fight your way out,” continued the shorter woman.
“I am. Provided you supply me with a magical detection device,” Twilight answered. “I could spend days or even months searching, but this seems to be the most expedient way to return to my world.”
“I assume you are the one to make such a promise?” the director continued, glancing expectantly at Sunset.
“Yes, well… I assumed that since she would be able to get us into the citadel, that it would be worth it,” Sunset Shimmer murmured, shrinking slightly under the intense gaze.
After several long, quiet moments punctuated only by the faint tapping of a keyboard, Luna let out a long sigh.
“You are correct in your assumption. Though I wish you would have consulted me first,” she remarked in a slightly defeated tone. “It would have been quite useful to reclaim that technology.”
“So, do we have a deal?” Twilight pressed. “I help you get into this citadel place, and you let me have this magical detector.”
“We do,” Luna declared, extending a hand. “You should count yourself lucky that we’ve been waiting for an opportunity like this to present itself. Otherwise we may not have been able to offer you such a trade in a timeline that you would find acceptable.”
Twilight shook the offered hand with her smaller appendage. “I am curious though. From what I was told, you were some manner of teacher on this side of the mirror.”
Luna chuckled. “I was deep undercover and not even my own sister knew that I was anything less than a humble vice-principal. Or did you really think your little portal went completely unnoticed?”
“Celestia always hoped to establish friendly relations when the time was right, but due to circumstances, that has since become impossible,” Twilight explained.
“So it's true then. She is actually a pony princess?” Luna asked, her voice a mix of amusement and guilt.
“She was, yes. Circumstances have since changed, I’m afraid,” Twilight replied.
“Then we have something in common,” Luna muttered before sighing. “But that is neither here nor there.
“Sunset, have you explained to our guest the issues our Twilight has experienced during her attempt to take over the world?” Luna questioned.
Sunset Shimmer shrugged. “Sort of. I didn't go into much detail and only mentioned that she has trouble controlling them all.”
“Right, well as you can see on this map, our Twilight, hereby designated as the black queen, can't coordinate all of her forces alone,” Luna stated, gesturing towards the map. “She needs these psionically powerful infested humans to relay her orders across vast distances and act as her lieutenants.”
“Understandable,” Twilight murmured. “Controlling something over such a distance is difficult.”
Luna glanced to Sunset briefly, who shrugged. “Do you have experience commanding psionic armies?”
Twilight quickly shook her head. “In my world there is no one domineering force controlling the zerg, allowing my friends and I to remain free. My connection to them has proven difficult to maintain over vast distances.”
The older woman hummed thoughtfully to herself before turning back to the map. “Well, as you can see, she hasn't engaged in any kind of wide-scale offensive after the growing pains of her army were made more apparent.”
“A whole bunch of zerg broke off from the main force and turned into mindless animals a month or so back,” Sunset Shimmer interjected. “They slaughtered each other and apparently even injured Twilight herself during the chaos.”
“After which the black queen set her forces into a holding pattern while she attempted to remedy that little problem,” Luna continued. “Before we can assault the citadel, we need to obtain any information we can from her research center here.”
The woman tapped a screen twice, prompting a much smaller map to appear, one which was helpfully labeled as Canterlot. A second after it opened, Luna pointed to a large four leaf clover-shaped building on the north end of the city. Though called ‘The Community Center’ it clearly hadn't served that purpose for some time, given the fact that it was covered in a pulsating fleshy exterior.
“We need to know what other manner of zerg she's been brewing up,” Luna stated. “We also have reason to believe that a number of high value civilian non-combatants are being experimented on. Their recovery is paramount. For not only does it mean depriving the black queen of more potential lieutenants, but it allows us to bolster our numbers.”
“In addition to saving them from a fate worse than death,” Sunset Shimmer added, to which Luna nodded.
“How do you know this is the right place?” Twilight questioned.
“Simple. It's the second greatest concentration of psionic energy in the city, and not only that, we’ve been able to detect massive spikes of what we assume is some form of magic,” Luna continued. “If she's figured out how to cast the type of spells that Sunset mentioned, then there is a good chance we won't last much longer. Even if she hasn't figured out how to control more zerg.”
Twilight nodded slowly. “Putting so much strategic importance on a single place. Surely it's well-guarded?”
Luna nodded. “It is, but we have a plan of our own. One which we have not been able to execute due to the fact that we have not had an agent capable of interfacing with the biological machines at the site.”
“Due to the black queen’s poor control, she only has a single anti-air structure in the area. If we are able to take it out a second before we deploy a psi emitter, they won't be able to ask for backup,” Sunset Shimmer added.
“Exactly,” Luna declared firmly. “Immediately after that a team will land atop the structure, enter through the rooftop access, and find the data we need. While this is happening, a second team will deploy a bomb which will reduce the building to rubble after you’ve left.”
“And then I can assist you in hitting the citadel and fulfilling my end of the bargain?” Twilight pressed.
Luna nodded. “Unless we uncover something which makes the attack impossible to pull off.”
“Which isn't likely,” Sunset quickly interjected. “We’ve been watching the citadel for months and know with absolute certainty that she hasn't left the building once in all that time.”
“And with this last bit of information, we will hopefully be able to confirm our suspicions and prepare our assault,” Luna stated.
Twilight hummed thoughtfully. “How do you plan on doing so anyway? There are hundreds of those things between us and her.”
The older woman pointed to several square blocks absolutely covered by a mass of zerg creatures which milled about around the enormous tower. Though the majority happened to be either zerglings or hydralisks, there were ultralisks present, but they were few in number. None of the more complicated life forms Twilight had seen were represented in the vast army.
“They are being controlled by a dozen lieutenants,” Luna began, pointing to the few unaffected structures in the area. “We only have a single missile salvo left, but they should be enough to kill the majority of them and throw the rest into disarray.’
Luna then pointed to a half destroyed mall a block away. “There is an old access tunnel here, which we will use to deploy our forces near the citadel itself. Utilizing the chaos, we should be able to enter the structure and bring it down, killing the black queen and ending this entire war.”
“Bold,” Twilight declared. “You assume quite a bit.”
“We’ve done the homework. We know this will work,” Sunset Shimmer stated.
“If you say so,” Twilight murmured, rising back to her full height. “What now then?”
“Now you can retire to the barracks. Enjoy a good meal, a decent bed, as well as some peace and quiet,” Luna answered.
“I assume Sunset will be my guide once more?” Twilight questioned.
Sunset glanced to Luna, who nodded slowly. “She will, but after that is done. I expect her to return in order to give me her full report on the situation as well as her previous mission.”
The red-haired woman snapped off a quick salute. “Yes, ma’am.”
“Alright, get out of here and make sure to grab some food while you're down there. You make me hungry just looking at those skinny arms of yours,” Luna barked before turning around and going back to studying the map.
Sunset motioned back towards the elevator. “Shall we?”
Twilight nodded. “After you.”
Together the pair returned back to the small elevator, passing between the stoic guards, who gave them each only a single glance before facing forwards once again. A second later Twilight was ducking into the small square space, hunching over slightly due to the low ceiling. This time it was empty however, and soon they were descending back to the chaotic hangar area.
During the short trip Twilight couldn't help but contemplate what she had been told, picking apart the information she had gathered while there. Her own psionic abilities were only dampened somewhat while out of the lower areas of the base. This allowed Twilight to read anyone’s surface level emotions, which all but confirmed that this Luna had been telling the truth.
Even still, it wasn't impossible that the human woman had received training to fool such readings. Sunset meanwhile didn't seem to hold back on any of her emotions and could easily be read even without Twilight being a psychic.
“Do you really believe that's all it will take to bring her down?” Twilight asked, turning to the other woman.
“I do,” declared Sunset. “We've done extensive probing of her defences and made it seem as though we have run out of missles. She won’t know what hit her until we are already inside her base of operations.”
Twilight frowned and remained quiet until they had finished passing through the open area. She pointedly ignored all the stares she got, quite used to the barely contained malice of a few passersby given her experience in Canterlot. At least most humans were more curious than anything, though the pity of a few left a bad taste in Twilight’s mouth.
Once they had entered the larger elevator and put the majority of the base’s population behind them, Twilight turned to her companion once more.
“Tell me. If you were able to isolate the harmonic energy inside of my body, could you replicate it somehow?” Twilight questioned.
Sunset Shimmer blinked. “I don't know, to be honest with you. I don't even know how you have it. Or how it's even produced.”
“Would it be impossible with your level of technology?” Twilight pressed.
“I wouldn't say impossible, but it would take years at the bare minimum,” Sunset cautioned. “Why, what are you thinking?”
“Your Twilight. She's in there somewhere, I know it,” Twilight claimed. “You don't put giant holes in your defences or make such easily exploitable weak points unless you are trying to sabotage yourself.”
“You’ve been listening to Pinkie Pie,” Sunset shimmer remarked.
“Am I wrong?” Twilight challenged.
Sunset sighed. “I don't know what to believe. I want there to be some good left in her, but she's killed millions. Nearly everyone here has lost family, friends, and partners to her or her zerg.”
“But that wasn't her,” Twilight exclaimed. “I have felt the touch of whatever is influencing her when I was a child. I have felt its hate, its desire to dominate, and I understand that is not what she wants.”
“Look, if we can find a way to free her in the next few days, I promise to try, but we are talking about the fate of the world here. I can't put everyone’s lives on the line here even if it's the right thing to do,” Sunset Shimmer claimed.
“I’m not asking you too,” Twilight retorted. “Just try, that's it.”
Sunset Shimmer nodded. “I can do that much at least.”
“Thank you, Sunset,” Twilight exclaimed.
The doors opened to a new floor, and Sunset Shimmer stepped out. “Come on. Let's go find some food before we locate a bed for you. You must be starving.”
“That I am,” Twilight admitted.